


Coffee, Tweet, Repeat

by Prideful_Patton



Category: Sanders Sides (Web Series)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Coffee Shops & Cafés, Awkward Flirting, Barista Anxiety | Virgil Sanders, Coffee Shops, Deceit | Janus Sanders is a Good Friend, Fluff, Fluff and Humor, M/M, One Shot, Platonic Anxiety | Virgil Sanders & Deceit | Janus Sanders, Prinxiety - Freeform, Roman has a TikTok, Romantic Anxiety | Virgil Sanders/Creativity | Roman "Princey" Sanders, Social Media AU, Sympathetic Deceit | Janus Sanders, Virgil can't spell 'Roman'
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-26
Updated: 2021-01-26
Packaged: 2021-03-12 03:48:14
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,101
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29003997
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Prideful_Patton/pseuds/Prideful_Patton
Summary: Virgil and Janus work in the local college coffee shop, which is soon to become Roman's favourite place to visit. Virgil is in awe of Roman's performances and social media influence. If only there was a way for him to get Roman to remember him and keep coming back. Oh, wait. There is.'The worst stains in the world are coffee stains. The hot beverage is so dark it's visible on almost every piece of clothing - and the smell. Don’t get Virgil started on the smell. He knew scrubbing his shirt with a dry cloth wouldn’t budge the stubborn stains, but that’s all his manager could offer him to clean up...'
Relationships: Anxiety | Virgil Sanders & Creativity | Roman "Princey" Sanders, Anxiety | Virgil Sanders/Creativity | Roman "Princey" Sanders
Comments: 14
Kudos: 65





	Coffee, Tweet, Repeat

**Author's Note:**

> Here's some information about coffee!
> 
> Black Americano: Coffee and hot water.  
> White Americano: Coffee, hot water and milk.  
> Latte: Coffee and hot milk.  
> Cappuccino: Coffee and frothy hot milk.  
> Espresso: Just. Pure. Coffee.

The worst stains in the world are coffee stains. The hot beverage is so dark it's visible on almost every piece of clothing - and the smell. Don’t get Virgil started on the smell. He knew scrubbing his shirt with a dry cloth wouldn’t budge the stubborn stains, but that’s all his manager could offer him to clean up.

“Virge?” A familiar voice piped from behind the stockroom door. “You okay?”

“Peachy,” Virgil replied, starting to feel sore from all his scrubbing.

“Manager told me to come get you. That Karen and her kids have left now, so you can come help me on the counter again.” The stockroom door opened and Janus slinked in. “Christ- I can’t believe she dunked her drink on you. It didn’t burn you, did it?”

“No, don’t think so. It’s okay. I’ll be back out in a second, Jan.”

“Alright then…I think there’s spare aprons behind the boxes of straws, if you need one,” Janus slipped out of the room, turning around to address his friend once more. “I spat in her replacement drink in your honour.” He said, before disappearing behind the swinging door. That got Virgil to crack a smile. He chucked the cloth onto one of the cardboard boxes scattered around him and replaced his apron with a fresh one that smelt of cleaning chemicals and coffee. His phone buzzed in his pocket for what felt like the millionth time that afternoon. Leaning on a box for support, Virgil skimmed his phone screen to see every single notification was from the one and only @Royaly_Roman.

Roman Prince was a theatre student from Virgil’s college. He had gained a small fanbase of guys, gals and non-binary pals due to his charm and talent on stage. That, and he also had a TikTok account. 

Janus had dragged Virgil to one of Roman’s performances a few months ago. Virgil had spent the whole of the show on his phone, ignoring the obnoxiously bright stage lights and the mediocre acting on stage. It was not until Roman began to sing, then Virgil was hooked. The rest of the performance he spent on his phone alright, desperately trying to find the Twitter of this amazing actor.

Virgil started to follow @Royaly_Roman and couldn’t get enough of his content. He made sure to turn on his notifications for every time Roman posted, even if it was just to rant about his brother. The most recent post was a picture of Roman’s shoes as he walked.

<3Princey<3 @Royaly_Roman

Just finishing my singing lesson.   
Note to self: Never sing without a drink again! 

~~~~~

Virgil shouldn’t have been surprised as he was when Roman Prince walked through the coffee shop's doors. The little silver bell jingled and Janus met eyes with the social media star as he waved politely to the two baristas cleaning the machines. Janus glanced over to Virgil who had successfully recovered from his initial shock because, why wouldn’t Roman come here? They see students and classmates in this shop all the time. This isn’t some cheesy romance coffee shop AU fanfic on Ao3, Virgil. This is quality stuff.

“Afternoon, gentleman!” Roman announced when he had reached the counter. “Do you have coconut milk here?” Janus continued to scrub the machines, leaving Virgil to answer.

“Yup. All kinds.”

“Fantastic! In that case, can I order a skinny coconut caramel latte with two and a half shots of coffee, another shot of caramel, no foam, cream and sprinkles to go, please?” Virgil blinked at the man in front of him, finger hovering over the latte button on the register. He clicked it, trying not to smile at the slight croak in Roman’s voice. He must have really damaged his vocal chords.

“And what’s your name, sir?”

“For Roman, thank you,” and with that, he walked away, pulling out his phone and sitting on one of the window benches. Janus chuckled to himself, earning a sideways glance from Virgil, who subtly stuck out his middle finger to his friend. Janus shrugged in return, miming a few inappropriate gestures himself before slithering out of the room to get some spare coffee beans. Virgil glared at the door his colleague had walked through, but he knew Janus had no bad intentions. The emo had been crushing on Roman Prince since that first performance, and this was his chance to make an impression.

Virgil let the shots of coffee filter as he heats the milk, watching his placement of the steamer carefully to avoid any foam.

Should he start a conversation? No, that’ll be too obvious. Maybe he can pretend not to know Roman and do the whole ‘hey, haven’t I seen you somewhere before?’ schtick. No, that’ll be hard to explain later. 

He poured the milk and coffee shots into a cup, moving over to the syrup to add the caramel. 

Maybe he should write his number on the cup? Was that too forward? Yes. Way too forward. Oh, god, maybe just a little heart next to his name? Or was that not forward enough? 

Virgil took the cream can, shaking it thoroughly before dipping the nozzle into the open lid of the cup to create a perfect little sphere of whipped cream. He added a gracious amount of sprinkles before clicking his pen to write on the cup. He paused. He glanced at Roman who was still typing away on his phone. An idea sparked in his mind. A sly smile tugged at his lips as Virgil scribbled on the cup.

~~~~~

“Here’s your coffee, sir,” Virgil announced, placing the steaming cup on the table. Roman glanced up from his phone, nodding politely to the barista before taking a sip.

“Thanks.”

“No problem,” Virgil returned Roman’s charming smile with a two-finger salute. Then tilted his head as he saw Roman’s brow furrow. He followed his gaze to the obnoxiously large coffee stain on his shirt.

God damn it, Karen. 

Virgil stammered, turning to rush back to the counter. Awesome. Amazing. Roman now probably thought he spilt coffee on himself. What a wonderful first impression. He grumbled to himself, cheeks burning, ducking into the storage room at the back of the café.

Janus was leaning against one of the metal stands. He glanced up from his phone when Virgil entered, took one look at his friend’s flushed cheeks and smirked.

“Dear God, man. What did he do to you?” He mused. Virgil punched his colleague’s arm as he passed, earning a low grunt.

“Shut up.”

“So,” Janus rubbed his sore arm. “Was that the romantic meeting you planned?”

“No. He probably thinks I spilt coffee down myself like a clutz. And I couldn’t bring myself to tell him what happened and I ran.” Virgil rolled his eyes, snatching up the dirty cloth and scrubbed at the stain on his shirt once more. Janus watched him, biting the inside of his cheek as he thought of something to say.

“...That’s rough, buddy.”

“Thanks, Prince Zuko,” Virgil scoffed. After a moment of frustrating silence, he hurled the cloth to the floor, sinking down next to it to hug his knees. Janus stalked over to give him a few awkward pats on the shoulder, before heading to the coffee counter to see if they have any new customers. A couple of coins had been left on the counter next to Roman’s now empty cup, and Janus couldn't help but smirk at what Virgil had written.

Virgil felt sorry for himself in the storage room for a while, groaning into his hoodie sleeves, mentally kicking himself for his interaction with Roman.

Then his phone buzzed.

Virgil reluctantly snatched his phone out of his pocket. It was a new notification from @Royaly_Roman.

<3Princey<3 @Royaly_Roman

Aha! Look what the barista did to my coffee. ‘Princey’. I love meeting fans!  
Definitely coming back soon ;) Especially when the baristas are cute.

Virgil squinted when his phone screen lit up, taking a moment to turn down the brightness. His eyes scanned the screen and a small smile returned to his lips.

“See you again soon, Princey.”

~~~~~

It was around a week later, Roman returned to the café. Janus was on the till, chatting to the manager when he realised who had walked in. He noticed Roman pause, glancing between him and the manager before straining his neck to look around.

“Can we help you?” Janus asked, logging into the till. Roman blinked at him for a moment, the cogs in his head turning.

“Yes! Yes, uh, skinny coconut caramel latte with two and a half shots of coffee, another shot of caramel, no foam, cream and sprinkles to go, please,” Roman listed. Janus fumbled, trying to press all of the correct buttons in time to Roman’s rambling. The barista sighed through his nose, wondering whether or not he should get someone else to make the drink. Then, Virgil walked out of the stockroom, fresh and ready to work. Janus smirked, turning the screen to the emo and gesturing to Roman, who beamed at the new arrival.

“Do you mind making this gentleman’s drink for me, Virge?” Janus cooed. Virgil grunted in reply, glancing at the screen, before getting to work on the coffee machine behind him. Roman watched him, taking note of his sluggish movements and how the bags under his eyes didn’t look like just eyeshadow today.

“Rough night?” Roman asked, resting his crossed arms on the counter. Virgil shrugged, pouring the steamed milk into a cup.

“You could say that. Nothing serious, though. Just one of those nights, you know?” He turned to address the customer and paused when he met eyes with Roman Prince. The social media star raised a cocky eyebrow to the barista.

“What’s wrong? You look like you’ve seen a celebrity,” Roman remarked, leaning over the counter. Virgil watched him, fighting the blush away from his cheeks. He instead replaced his stare with a coy smile.

“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” he placed the drink beside the no-longer-cocky Roman.

“You...my drink...the other day,” he stammered, Virgil’s blush long forgotten next to Roman’s pink face. The emo tapped his chin in exaggerated thought.

“Oh, I thought I recognised this order. You’re the gentleman who ordered the same a week ago.”

“I-” Recovering from the sudden jolt to his ego, Roman swept a hand through his hair. “Is there nowhere else you recognise me from? At all?”

“Nope. Have a lovely day, sir.” With that, Virgil swept away, saluting a goodbye before turning to address the now dirty steamer. Roman slumped in on himself. Maybe the name on the cup had only been a coincidence? Was it so ridiculous to think that Roman Prince could have met a fan? Of course not, but he guessed today wasn’t that day. Leaving a few coins on the counter, he retreated to the door of the shop. Just as he stepped outside, Virgil called out to him.

“See you again soon, Princey!” But before Roman could retort, the door had shut, cutting him off from the warm interior of the coffee shop. The social media star stood there for a moment, before chuckling to himself. He strutted away, taking out his phone to tweet his next masterpiece.

<3Princey<3 @Royaly_Roman

Same coffee shop, same barista. He’s messing with me!   
Look what he wrote on my cup! ‘Romano’. How dairy!

~~~~~

When Roman had left the store and the manager had disappeared, Virgil stomped over to Janus and punched him in the arm.

“Ow!” Janus cursed, rubbing his arm. “What? I did you a favour, you’ve really got Roman’s attention now!”

“Give a guy a warning next time! I almost puked when I realised I was talking to him,” Virgil complained. He was interrupted when he was hit in the face with a wet cloth. “Hey!”

“Revenge. I need help sanitising these tables, I’ve already de-gummed them,” Janus said. Virgil peeled the cloth off his face, his precious bangs now damp and hanging further down his forehead. Rolling eyes, he took two sanitiser bottles, handed one to Janus and started wiping down the tables. His phone buzzed. He looked over to his colleague, who shrugged, signalling he didn't mind if Virgil stopped to check his phone. He slid it out of his pocket and bit his lip to hide his smile. Roman was such a dork. Janus was at his side in an instant, peering over his shoulder to see the screen.

“I’m the best wing-man ever,” he joked, giving the emo’s arm a squeeze before going back to work. As annoyed as Virgil pretended to be, he had to agree with Janus. It was because of him, he even knew about Roman at all. He scrolled to the comments of the post and was pleasantly shocked at the response.

Queen Brea @DramaLlama replying to @Royaly_Roman

Lmao, who is this mystery barista? He’s 100% flirting.

~Daisy~ @DisneyDaisy replying to @Royaly_Roman @DramaLlama

I kind of ship it tbh.

Queen Brea @DramaLlama replying to @Royaly_Roman @DisneyDaisy

Highkey, me too.

Virgil chuckled as he scrolled, more and more comments asking who he is or for a name. And a few even asked if they were dating yet. He usually wasn’t one for being in the spotlight. He loved Disney and singing, a lot like Roman, but the thought of stepping out of his comfort zone and performing petrified him. Yet, he wasn’t shrinking away from this kind of attention. Perhaps it was the fact he felt safe behind the screen, anonymously tucked away from all the curious comments. He wanted to see how far he could take this.

This pattern continued for a while. Roman became a weekly regular to the café and Virgil was more than happy to reciprocate the college student’s coy flirting with his own unique form of teasing; getting Roman’s name wrong.

<3Princey<3 @Royaly_Roman

Felt a little braver and winked at the mystery barista today!  
He spilt hot milk down himself lol. That’s what you get for calling me ‘Remus’.

<3Princey<3 @Royaly_Roman

I know you read these, emo-nightmare! I said I was sorry about the hot milk, okay?!  
Sincerely, ‘Rat-man’.

<3Princey<3 @Royaly_Roman

‘Greg’. That’s it. Just ‘Greg’. Seems our devilishly handsome barista is running out of ideas.

<3Princey<3 @Royaly_Roman

Update: I have been graciously forgiven, boys, girls and non-binary pearls!  
For those of you asking me for his name, I’m just as curious as you are!  
Believe me, I’ve been trying to find out lol.

~~~~~

Virgil snickered into the palm of his hand as he scrolled through Roman’s twitter. Almost every single tweet the man posted revolved around Virgil somehow, and the barista was loving it - possibly more than the fans. If Virgil had a crush on him before, he was practically swooning now.

Just like every other week, at three o’clock sharp, Roman strolled through the cafe’s doors, taking in a deep breath of powdered coffee and sanitiser. Virgil glanced up from his phone, saluted, and continued scrolling.

“Hey, mysterious barista.”

“Hey, Greg.”

“It’s Roman.”

“Right. Yeah. I’ll get it right this time.” Virgil looked up from his phone to Roman with a sly smirk, obviously not intending to get it right this time. Roman chuckled, patting the back pocket of his jeans where his phone was.

“I’ll be prepared for when you do.” Roman returned, taking his place with his arms crossed, leaning against the counter so he could talk to his favourite barista. Virgil set to work making his drink, having it memorised by now. They shared a comfortable silence, Virgil being very aware that Roman was looking at him up and down.

“Like what you see?” Virgil asked, catching the customer off guard. Roman straightened his back a little and coughed into his fist before his charming smile returned to his face.

“I would be lying if I said no, but I was actually wondering if you’d be ever so kind and give me the chance to learn your name?”

“No.” Was Virgil’s short, swift and sweet reply. Roman chuckled, shrugging his shoulders.

“It was worth a shot.”

“I admire your dedication.” Virgil finished steaming the milk and added it to the caffeine mixture. He placed the lid onto the cup and uncapped a black marker pen. “Name?”

“Actually- before you do that. I wanted to ask you something?” Roman was no longer leaning against the counter. His hand swept through his air and he seemed to take interest in looking at everything in the room that wasn’t Virgil. The barista cocked his head to the side at the sudden drop of confidence. Taking his silence as confirmation, Roman continued. “I have a show in a month or two. Maybe my biggest one yet. I wanted to really get into the part so I bought tickets for the same show being hosted by a different theatre. I didn’t want to go alone and I know you like musicals so…”

Virgil didn’t know how to respond. Was Roman really asking him out on a date? He tried to mouth a reply but all that came out was hot air. The social media star still didn’t meet his eyes, finding the design of the wooden countertop to be very interesting indeed. Knowing the ball of black swirling anxiety in his stomach wouldn’t let him reply, he started writing on the cup, scribbling away with the black marker.

He pushed the cup towards Roman who still hadn’t looked at him in the eyes. He sighed, picking up the cup, and taking out his phone to take a picture.

“I’m sorry if I made you uncomfortable. I can find someone else to go with. Or maybe I can go…” Roman trailed off as he read the cup, eyes scanning, darting left to right. A bright smile adorned his features and looked across Virgil who was so red it was almost concerning.

“So, eight o’clock sound good for you?”

~~~~~

It was around midnight when @Royaly_Roman posted his weekly coffee shenanigans. He apologised for posting so late, claiming he had gotten distracted preparing for his date with the barista, who he tagged as @2Anxious4U. He wrote how they spent the night together watching the show and ending up grabbing some late night food as neither wanted the date to end.

The picture he posted was the one he had taken in the coffee shop hours before. His cup was placed on the cafe’s counter and was still hot. Thick black writing adorned the coffee cup. It read:

‘Can’t go on a date with someone you don’t even know the name of.  
~Virgil <3’

**Author's Note:**

> Hello Reader!  
> Thank you so much for the amazing feedback on my first Sanders Sides fanfic! I'm sorry this one took a little longer to write. I was originally planning to publish this when the new Sanders Asides came out, but, oh well! Hope you all enjoyed! If you have any question on what happened on the date or just want a chat, pop a little comment below!
> 
> Coffee shop AUs are my guilty pleasure,  
> Amy~


End file.
